[NaturalMama]

Wow, I've been taking vitex (chasteberry) and it seems to be working. I haven't been taking it for very long either. I will certainly keep taking it. I feel very slightly crampy and I had a slight blood tinge when I wiped, it wasn't much though and it had some clear cervical fluid mixed in with it, I'd say it was slight spotting but hey it's a start. I might be getting a cycle by the end of the day. :spudnikboogie: So perhaps my not getting a cycle for 2 years now and not being able to conceive yet was hormonal. Vitex stimulates the pituary gland which takes care of the hormone production and the thyroid too. I've heard of quite a few women who had low progesterone and had lots of miscarriages due to it use vitex to carry to term. Anyway, I'll let oyu know how it goes by tonight. I might as well also take a pregnancy test if nothing more happens tonight, ya never know if it could just be implantation spotting.

[heart2heart]

Hmmm!
I have 2 bottles of Chastberry Extract in my cupboard.
Perhaps this would get me ready to conceive???
What do you think out there???
Any advice??

[tiffanniwi]

I would love to take it just to regulate my 21-52 day cycles!!! Some regularity in this area would be so nice! ;)

Let us know what you find out NaturalMama!

Leigh, I'm sorry but I don't know much about it myself. I hope that you get your answer.

[Jewel]

Vitex regulates hormones so it makes you fertile as if you are in balance it's more likely a pg will occur. Women use it to regulate cycles and to conceive.
I took it to regulate my cycles and hormones and within a month I was pg with my most recent baby. I have read many similar stories from other women using it. :)

[NaturalMama]

Well it certainly is working! Yay! My flow started just a few hours following the spotting. Not only that but I usually have painful menses but this time it is just very slightly crampy and no headache or acne. I love Vitex! I'm so glad that god saw fit to bless the earth with so many useful herbs for us. I also noticed more energy too a few days after taking vitex. So obviously my hormones needed balancing and it has really helped me with that.

It sure wouldn't hurt to give it a try, and it may just be very helpful.

Jewel, love your new pics!

This post has been edited by NaturalMama: 19 March 2008 - 10:27 PM

[tiffanniwi]

:_biggrin: Well congratulations J! LOL, I'm sure I've never said that to anyone about getting AF before!!! :lol:

[Sombra]

Leigh, I suffered 5 miscarriages last year.. finally in September/October I took vitex.. and now I'm 22 weeks pregnant. I was taking about 800mg of dried vitex fruit in capsules daily.. and i took it until 7-8 weeks pregnant. I was on Vitex when I got pg with Janney (that's after miscarrying Landis 4 months earlier) and then on it again when I conceived Asher - I was using it to help with endometriosis.

[NaturalMama]

Thanks for the congrats! LOL! You're right, usually when menstruation is mentioned on the board it's not something wanted since for many it comes early. But I have been waiting for it to start for the passed year so I could conceive. Another benefit, is that usually my flow is very heavy and has lots of clots, this time it is actually normal and no clots. This is the first step for me to be able to conceive. Them hormones can really get in the way when they are out of whack. So glad it's such a simple solution.

Hopefully I'll conceive soon. I'm only taking 400 mg which is obviously enough for me to notice the benefits, I wonder if I should double it. THe bottle does say to take 2 capsules, I just thought that since I"m pretty petite that 1 capsule might be enough. If I don't conceive in the next couple of months I will certainly double it.

[kbl]

I am glad you ladies are discussing this. I was telling DH about it this morning. We have a friend that m/c a couple of years ago. I do not think they are wanting to try again. Their first birth was a hospital horror story.
Anyway with my high estrogen and endo, I think I ought to try this and get myself ready to conceive.
"The more you learn (about herbs), the more you (I) forget".

[kbl]

Question:

Have any of you had negative results only to get improvement later. I started taking Vitex a few days before my last period and now this period is worse. I have had a major increase in acne on my body and face, I usually only have 1-2 small blemishes on my chin. My mood was crabby, I usually don’t have that at all. My cramps were ‘pass out and sleep’ painful for three days, so I stayed on Midol to take the edge off. I hate taking that stuff but when it gets this bad natural/herbal pain relief doesn’t work for me.

I know that sometimes there is an adjustment to new things for the body. I was just wondering if anyone has experienced things getting worse before better. I stopped taking it until my period is over.

Any thoughts?

[Mamita]

I have not taken it yet but my friend here started taking it last year. What she was told was that for some people it takes about 3 months to start noticing the benefits. It could be your body is working it out?

Also, my friend is very small (like just under 100 pounds) and said that taking 2 a day for her was too much...she cut it down to one a day and is doing fine. She was one who saw positive results the first month but it could be with some it takes a few months.

[kbl]

Mamita, on Apr 28 2008, 07:06 AM, said:

I have not taken it yet but my friend here started taking it last year. What she was told was that for some people it takes about 3 months to start noticing the benefits. It could be your body is working it out?

Also, my friend is very small (like just under 100 pounds) and said that taking 2 a day for her was too much...she cut it down to one a day and is doing fine. She was one who saw positive results the first month but it could be with some it takes a few months.

Thanks, I will keep going, but maybe I do need to reduce it. They usually instruct you to take 800mg for awhile and then drop to 400mg. I usually forgot to take the second dose, so half the time it was only 400mg. :huh: We'll see.

[NaturalMama]

I have not had any negative results. My period came and I had another. The first time I had very few cramps, just a crampy feeling when normally I am bedridden for a bit out of pain, and it was much shorter and the bleeding was less, I used to bleed ALOT and it lasted longer than most and I used to have clots which I didn't have. The second cycle since I've been taking vitex was even better, I had absolutely no cramping and felt completely normal, it was amazing to me! I also have had more fertile cervical fluid, I have gotten egg-white kind, which I've never gotten before. So it's definately normalizing my hormones and helping me so much. I also feel better, more energy and I eat less as I'm not hungry all the time, I also have less desire for grains, and my weight has been normailizing, I weigh 112 pounds as of a couple of days ago when before taking the vitex I was less than 100 pounds at 5'3" and way too skinny and had a very hard time to gain weight no matter how much I ate and yet I was always hungry and eating, craving mostly carbs. I also still nurse and my milk has been more abundant as well. So, I'm really excited about all of this! It's amazing what our hormones can do when their out of wack and it's amazing how simple it is to normalize it with the vitex, atleas for me. I probably have noticed a more immediate benefit because I am very petite.

HTH!

[kbl]

NaturalMama, on Apr 28 2008, 09:31 AM, said:

I also have had more fertile cervical fluid, I have gotten egg-white kind, which I've never gotten before.

HTH!

I did notice an increase in that for me. I told DH, I clearly know when I would be ready for a productive BD, lol. (After his surgery of course.)
Maybe next month will be better for the rest of the issues.
I do not think this will "cure" my endo, but I should think it would help and be a part of the healing journey.

Thanks for the feedback.

[Mamita]

What brand of Vitex do you buy? I am about to put in an order and found a great deal online. The brand is Puritan's Pride and it's capsules of 400mg. This is what my friend is taking and has had great results. I just thought I'd ask what you all are using.